Wei
Jingsheng Foundation News and Article Release Issue: A772-W490
魏京生基金会新闻与文章发布号： A772-W490
Release
Date: July 27, 2013
发布日：2013年7月27日
Topic:
The Trial of Bo Xilai -- Wei Jingsheng
标题：审判薄熙来 -- 魏京生
Original
Language Version: Chinese (Chinese version at the end)
此号以中文为准（英文在前，中文在后）
Note:
Please use "Simplified Chinese (GB2312)" encoding to view the Chinese
parts of this release. If this
mail does not display properly in your email program, please send your request
for special delivery to us or visit:
http://www.weijingsheng.org/report/report2013/report2013-07/WeiJS130727BoXLtrialA772-W490.htm which
contains identical information.
-----------------------------------------------------------------
The
Trial of Bo Xilai
--
Wei Jingsheng
Yesterday
I was in the online chatrooms with many Internet users in China. I noticed that people are all very
concerned about the trial of Bo Xilai.
Because of their differing points of view, some Internet friends almost
had a quarrel against each other.
However,
I feel the kind of person Bo Xilai was is not the most important issue. Since it is a trial of him, we need to
be concerned that this trial is fair.
Most of the news and information coming out of this trial is that it is
a politically motivated trial.
That is because Bo lost his political power, or, using the words of the
Chinese Communists, "he has made political mistakes", thus he is
detained and put on trial. Of
course, this kind of trials would not be fair.
There
is a consensus among the modern international circles now. That is that different political views
and ideologies do not constitute criminal behavior. The famous Amnesty International calls for the release of
all political prisoners and is against imprisonment of political
prisoners. This attitude is the
product of the modern civilization.
Why
shouldn't politics be criminal itself?
No political behavior constitutes conducting crime in and of
itself. The basic concept of crime
is harming the physical bodies or interests of others for personal
benefit. Of course, there are many
criteria, restrictions, and exceptions, such as action in self-defense does not
constitute a crime.
As
we all know any political actions and thoughts are initiated from the interests
of the people and society. We may
comment on which thought is wrong, and what policy will bring disaster. With this kind of criticism and
controversy, social order will go in the better direction. If expressing one's views, or
implementing one's own ideas constitutes a crime, who would dare to speak?
If
we are afraid of speaking because we could be criminalized as a result, the
society would soon fall into reticence.
A taciturn society naturally cannot tell right from wrong. A society that cannot tell right from
wrong will inevitably slide into chaos and without order. All so-called chaos in the society is
produced thus.
Therefore,
without being allowed to say something wrong, the right words will be difficult
to produce and disseminate.
Fallacies and wrong political behavior will spread; society will be
chaotic and disorderly. Such a
situation is the real chaos in our society. Therefore, the protection of freedom of speech is to protect
the rights of people to say something that might be wrong. Without the right to say something that
might be wrong, there will be no right to say something right. When we all lose our rights of speech,
it is impossible to correct the political mistakes. This is exactly the hotbed for the authoritarian politics.
What
is a political prisoner? I
encountered one peasant in prison without much education. However, inadvertently he uttered a
very precise standard. He said:
"We are criminals who harm the others for our own interests; yet you
political prisoners hurt yourself for the benefit of others." At least in the authoritarian political
system, this standard is very accurate.
When
we, known as political dissidents, are detained, of course we are the standard
political prisoners. But think
about it more carefully, were Liu Shaoqi and Deng Xiaoping detained during Mao
Zedong's era as political prisoners?
Did they offend Mao for their own interests? Their political behavior may include their own fame and
fortune, but their behavior was still primarily for the public and society
rather than for their own benefit.
Putting them in jail as criminals of course was not fair.
Now
Chen Liangyu (the Shanghai Mayor who fell out of favor in 2006 and is serving
18 years due to political reasons) and Bo Xilai are in the same situation. One may firmly oppose their political
behavior, yet any political act should not constitute a crime. During the Mao Zedong era, it was
through putting down and detaining political prisoners like Liu Shaoqi and Deng
Xiaoping that ultimately Mao Zedong and his cabal realized a dictatorial rule.
Does
the leadership group of Xi Jinping now have the goal to be the Mao Zedong
II? As yet we have not seen
it. But many things could not be
done in the way one originally thought.
Instead, the prominent trend of circumstance will push one to do
something different. The initial
goal may not reach one's imagination, yet one's action will produce inevitable
results according to its own rule.
As the Chinese saying goes, you reap what you sow. When one plants a seed of dictatorship,
how could it be possible to bear other fruits?
Bo
Xilai's "sing praises for the red and hit the black society" movement
was resolutely opposed by most Chinese.
Then, all that needed to be done was to oust him from his post. Is it necessary to put him in jail as
political prisoner? Political
issues should be resolved politically.
Using judicial means to solve political problems, by historical
experience is for sure bound toward dictatorship. The old tradition of the Communist Party was to use
anti-corruption as a means of political struggle. The result is that it not only strengthened the autocracy,
its anti-corruption made corruption even worse, to the degree of being
widespread like flood now.
Some
friends will say Bo Xilai was as strong as a prince so it would be hard to make
him step down unless there are extraordinary measures. Just like in the old drama of the
emperors' palaces, otherwise he would rebel. But I want to ask these friends, why aren't the United States, the United Kingdom,
etc. worried about rebellion of the politicians? In a democratic system, politics is politics. People can use the normal way for
political struggle, instead of adopting the so-called extraordinary measures.
In a
democratic country, people do not have to worry about "wiping out all the
9 kinships" like what happened in ancient China due in political
struggles. Neither do they have to
be worried about going to jail because something they said was wrong. This kind of political environment
ensures a variety of views to be presented for political change, while various
policies can be used to test directions.
People can adopt the right advice for the best results, while minimizing
the losses due to the wrong policy.
Although the wisdom of other people may not necessarily be higher than
that of the Chinese, in comparison to the authoritarian regime in China their
overall effect is indeed much better.
Since
the case of Bo Xilai has degenerated into a political case, then his wrong
policy has reduced to a secondary important pair of contradictions. The main issue of this case is that do
we oppose the trial of political prisoners? Do we want to give up the principle of the long-term goal,
in an effort to solve the issue right in front of us? The better principle is to use political means to solve
political issues, instead of using judicial means to solve political
differences. When we turn a
political struggle into a judicial issue, then we will see tyranny for sure and
the society is bound to chaos.
To
give up the principle for petty interest will result in an even higher
price. To put one Chen Liangyu or one
Bo Xilai on trial will only solve a small issue. However, from this point on producing the second Mao Zedong
will be a huge disaster for the Chinese people.
To
hear Mr. Wei Jingsheng's related commentary, please visit:
http://www.weijingsheng.org/RFA/RFA2013/WeiJS130726BoXLtrial.mp3
(Written
and recorded on July 26, 2013.
Broadcasted by Radio Free Asia.)
-----------------------------------------------------------------
This
is a message from WeiJingSheng.org
The
Wei Jingsheng Foundation and the Overseas Chinese Democracy Coalition are
dedicated to the promotion of human rights and democratization in China. We appreciate your assistance and help
in any means. We pledge solidarity
to all who struggle for human rights and democratic governance on this planet.
You
are welcome to use or distribute this release. However, please credit with this foundation and its website
at: www.weijingsheng.org
Although
we are unable to afford to pay royalty fees at this time, we are seeking your
contribution as well. You may send
your articles, comments and opinions to: HCP@weijingsheng.org. Please remember, only in text files,
not in attachments.
For
website issues and suggestions, you may contact our professional staff and web
master at: webmaster@Weijingsheng.org
To
find out more about us, please also visit our websites at: www.WeiJingSheng.org
and www.ChinaLaborUnion.org for news and information for Overseas Chinese
Democracy Coalition and human rights and democracy movement as whole,
especially our Chinese Labor Union Base.
You
may contact Ciping Huang at: HCP@Weijingsheng.org or
Wei
Jingsheng Foundation office at: 1-202-270-6980
Wei
Jingsheng Foundation's postal address is:
Wei
Jingsheng Foundation, P. O. Box 15449, Washington, DC 20003, USA
You
are receiving this message because you had previous shown your interest in
learning more about Mr. Wei Jingsheng and the Chinese Democratic Movement. To be removed from the list, simply
reply this message and use "unsubscribe" as the Subject. Please allow us a few days to process
your request.
*****************************************************************
中文版
Wei
Jingsheng Foundation News and Article Release Issue: A772-W490
魏京生基金会新闻与文章发布号： A772-W490
Release
Date: July 27, 2013
发布日：2013年7月27日
Topic:
The Trial of Bo Xilai -- Wei Jingsheng
标题：审判薄熙来 -- 魏京生
Original
Language Version: Chinese (Chinese version at the end)
此号以中文为准（英文在前，中文在后）
如有中文乱码问题，请与我们联系或访问:
http://www.weijingsheng.org/report/report2013/report2013-07/WeiJS130727BoXLtrialA772-W490.htm
-----------------------------------------------------------------
审判薄熙来
-- 魏京生
昨天我在网络上和众多网友聊天，发现大家都很关心薄熙来受审判的新闻。有几个网友因为观点不同，还差一点就吵起来。
其实我感觉，薄熙来是个什么样的人，不是最重要的。既然是审判，首先需要关心的是这场审判是否公正。传出来的消息大都认为这场审判是政治审判。因为他政治上失势了，用中共的话说就是犯了政治错误，因此而被关押并被审判。这样的审判当然不可能是公正的。
现代国际上早就有一个共识。政治观点和理念上的不同，不能构成犯罪。著名的国际特赦组织，也就是很多中国人说的大赦国际，它的宗旨就是营救政治犯，反对关押任何形式的政治犯。这是现代文明思想的产物。
为什么政治不应该被当作犯罪呢？首先是任何政治行为都不符合犯罪的条件。犯罪的基本概念，就是为了自己的利益损害了别人的利益或者身体。当然还有很多的判断标准和限制，例如自卫的权利就不属于犯罪。
大家都知道，任何政治行为和思想，都是从维护众人和社会的利益出发的。我们可以评论哪一个想法是错误的，哪一个政策会带来灾难。有了这种批评和争论，社会才能向更好的方向发展。如果发表自己的意见，或者实行自己的想法构成犯罪，大家还敢说话吗？
如果大家都不敢说话，说错了就成了犯罪，会使这个社会很快就陷入沉默寡言。沉默寡言的社会，自然也就不能明辨是非。不能明辨是非的社会，必然会逐渐陷入混乱和没有秩序。所谓的天下大乱就是这样产生的。
因此，不允许说错话，正确的话也就很难产生和传播。谬论和错误的政治行为就会泛滥，社会就是一片混沌和没有秩序。这样的状况才是真正的天下大乱。因此，保障言论自由就是保障人们说错话的权利。没有说错话的权利，也就没有了说对话的权利。大家都没有了说话的权利，政治的错误也就不可能纠正。这正是专制政治产生的温床。
什么是政治犯呢？我在监狱里碰到的一个几乎没什么文化的农民，无意间说出了一个非常准确的标准。他说：我们刑事犯是为了自己的利益损害了别人；你们政治犯是为了别人的利益损害了自己。至少在专制的政治体制下，这个标准非常准确。
象我们这种被称为异议人士或者持不同政见者的人被关押，当然是标准的政治犯。但是仔细思考一下，毛泽东时代的刘少奇，邓小平是不是政治犯呢？他们难道是为了自己的利益得罪了毛泽东吗？他们的政治行为可能包括他们自己的名利在内，但是他们的行为仍然主要是为了社会大众，而不是为了他们自己。把他们关进监狱当作罪犯，当然也就不公正。
现在的陈良宇和薄熙来也是同样的情况。你可以坚决反对他们的政治行为，但是任何政治行为都不能构成犯罪。毛泽东时代通过打倒和关押像刘少奇、邓小平这样的政治犯，最终实现了毛泽东和他的小集团的独裁统治。
现在的习近平领导集团是不是也有走向毛泽东二世的目标呢？暂时还看不出来。但是很多事情不是你想怎么做就能怎么做，而是大趋势会推着你不得不这么做。你开始的目标不一定就会达到你想像的结果，而是你的做法会按照它的规律产生必然的结果。正所谓种瓜得瓜，种豆得豆。你种下了一个走向独裁的种子，想结出别的果子，可能吗？
薄熙来的唱红打黑遭到世人的坚决反对。那么，把他赶下台就行了，有必要把他关进监狱成为政治犯吗？政治的问题应在政治上解决；而用司法手段解决政治问题，按历史的经验它就必然会走向独裁专制。共产党的老传统就是把反腐败作为政治斗争的手段。结果不但强化了专制政治，而且反腐败也是越反越腐败。现在已经是泛滥成灾了。
有的朋友会说，像薄熙来那样强势的一方诸侯，不采用点非常手段怎么能让他下台呢？就像辫子戏里边演得那样，不然他们会造反。但是我要反问这些朋友，怎么美国、英国就不用担心政治家造反呢？在民主的制度下，政治就是政治。人们可以用正常的方式进行政治斗争，没必要采取所谓的非常手段。
在民主国家，人们不必担心政治斗争变成诛灭九族，也不必担心说错了话就要进监狱。这样的政治环境保证各种意见都可以拿出来政变；各种政策都可以拿来试验。人们可以把正确的意见发挥到最好的效果；把错误的政策造成的损失降到最小的程度。尽管他人的智慧不见得比中国人更高，但和现在中国的专制制度比较，总体效果确实要好得太多了。
既然薄熙来的案件变质为政治案件，那么他的错误政策就降低为次要矛盾了。这个案件的主要问题，就是要不要反对审判政治犯，要不要为了眼前的是非而放弃长远的原则。这个原则就是政治问题用政治的方式解决；政治问题不能用司法的方式解决。把政治斗争转变为司法问题，就必然会走向专制，也必然会天下大乱。
贪小利而放弃大原则，最终的结果就是要付出更大的代价。现在审判一个陈良宇或者薄熙来，只不过解决了一个小问题。因此而制造出第二个毛泽东，才是中国人民的大灾难。
聆听魏京生先生的相关录音，请访问：
http://www.weijingsheng.org/RFA/RFA2013/WeiJS130726BoXLtrial.mp3
（撰写并录音于2013年7月26日。自由亚洲电台播出。）
-----------------------------------------------------------------
魏京生基金会及中国民主运动海外联席会议以推动中国的人权与民主为己任。
我们欢迎任何形式的帮助与贡献。我们愿与世界上为人权与民主而奋斗的人们一起努力。
我们希望您能够帮助我们散发我们的资料。但请标明出处与我们的网址：www.weijingsheng.org
欢迎投稿（暂无稿费）或批评建议，请寄信箱： HCP@WEIJINGSHENG.ORG
魏京生基金会通讯地址：
Wei
Jingsheng Foundation, P. O. Box 15449, Washington, DC 20003, USA
电话： 1-202-270-6980
魏京生基金会网址：WWW.weijingsheng.org
中国民主运动海外联席会议及中国团结工会的网址为：www.ChinaLaborUnion.org
阁下之所以收到本信，是因为阁下以前曾表示有兴趣了解魏京生先生和中国民主运动。
倘若阁下希望不再收到类似信息，请回复本信并用 unsubscribe 作为主题(Subject)。